L2 English pronunciation stability: The effect of a discontinuation of pronunciation coaching.
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2015-08-26
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en
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In second language teaching, pronunciation teaching tends to take a back seat. Even advanced students of English still have trouble in maintaining an advanced pronunciation level. This thesis aims to show how stable the pronunciation of advanced Dutch students of English is when explicit pronunciation teaching has been discontinued and exposure is minimal. This thesis hypothesises that the pronunciation of third-year students will become
less RP-like than it was before pronunciation teaching was stopped. Time spent abroad is expected to positively influence the students' pronunciation. It turns out that overall, the students' pronunciation deteriorates after pronunciation instruction was stopped, but specific features show distinct patterns of change. Additionally, the pronunciation of students who had spent time abroad showed clear improvement. Overall, the students' pronunciation improved when they received explicit pronunciation teaching, but did not stabilise enough for it to remain on that level once pronunciation coaching was discontinued.
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